If I Were A Bell
by Grav
Summary: Ask me how to describe this whole beautiful thing...


AN: I really have to stop being late to Dan/Jan day. This was completely unbetaed and typed in a hurry. Also, Heroes what?

WARNING: Serious Fluff Ahead. Bring your insulin.

Disclaimer: See last bit of author's note.

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_Ask me how to describe this whole beautiful thing,  
Well, if I were a bell I'd go Ding, Dong, Ding, Dong, Ding!_

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**If I Were A Bell**

Daniel began to get concerned when the doorbell rang. Whoever it was on his doorstep was half an hour early, and he wasn't done yet. He set the cake he was holding down on the counter-top and shed his oven mitts on the way to the door. As he passed through the living room, he noted the mess and decided that whoever it was that had the gall to show up early would be rewarded with having to clean up the mess before the others arrived.

Daniel became extremely concerned when he opened the door. There on his stoep, looking mildly apologetic, stood Janet Fraiser, the one person on the planet he really did not want to see at this exact moment.

"Hi Daniel! I'm sorry to be here early, but I was dropping Cassie off and I was in the neighbourhood and..." She trailed off and looked up at him. "Daniel, are you okay?"

"What? Yes. Fine. Come in." He stood back to let her in, shutting the door behind her. As she hung up her coat, his mind raced, trying desperately to think of a way out of his current dilemma.

"God, Daniel, this is a mess!" Janet said form the living room. "I mean, I know you've got an hour, but this is cutting it close, even for you."

"It's, uh, on my list."

"What's that smell?" Janet turned towards the kitchen and Daniel bolted across the room to block her way in a frantic attempt to salvage the situation.

"Nothing!"

"C'mon, Daniel..." She slid her hands up his chest to his shoulder and his will threatened to join his carefully wrought plans on their way down the toilet.

"Um..." he began, only to be interrupted by the phone. Making the most of the opportunity, he grabbed her hands and pulled her over to the phone with him.

"Hello?" he said into the receiver, holding Janet in place with his free hand.

"Hi Daniel, it's Sam." Sam's voice crackled, so Daniel could tell she was on her cell. "Hey, you know those flurries that were in the forecast? Well, they aren't so much flurries as a white out. We're stuck in the Mountain. You're on your own."

"Yeah, about that...."

"Daniel is that Sam?" Janet asked. Daniel winced.

Sam began to laugh.

"Thanks, Sam. You're great help," Daniel said sarcastically and then hung up on the still giggling Major.

"Daniel," said Janet, wiggling free. "What the hell is going on?"

"You know that saying 'If I knew you were coming I'd have baked a cake'?" Daniel asked. Janet nodded. "Well, I both knew you were coming and baked a cake, only you weren't supposed to be here for another 45 minutes and everyone else was supposed to be here in 15 and this was all supposed to be a surprise and...it's kinda not."

Janet stared at him, blinking and unsure of what to say. Suddenly, it made sense that conversation had stopped whenever she walked into a room during the preceding week.

"Happy Birthday, Janet."

"You baked a cake?"

"Yeah."

"But it smells good!"

"I happen to be very good at desserts. It's complicated things like turkey and stir fry that cause me trouble."

Janet grinned "How long does it have to cool before we can eat it?"

"If you don't mind melted ice cream, we can eat it now."

Much later, after cake and ice cream and cleaning living room so that there was actually room for two people on the sofa, they sat and watched the snow pile up against the window pane. Janet sighed and snuggled closer.

"You know, as far as spoiled birthday parties go, this has got to be the best in recorded history." Janet said.

"Really?"

"Well, we all got surprises."

"Yeah, I guess we did." Daniel paused. "Really?"

Janet didn't bother answering with words.

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AN: I have needed to write a cake story for a very long time. Thank you.

If I Were a Bell is from Guys and Dolls.


End file.
